Ventura County residents can track Santa Claus, but they won't see him and his reindeer as closely as in years past.

For the second year, company officials with Aspen Helicopter in Oxnard said they won't be flying in 2018.

Last December, a pilot for Aspen Helicopters said that after 35 years of tradition, the company will no longer conduct Santa's Christmas Eve flight over Ventura County.

The retirement of "Santa in Lights" stems from the growing number of drones and lack of safe flyover routes in the county, said Rick Throckmorton, a principal of the Oxnard-based company.

For decades a helicopter carrying an 800-pound, 35-foot long light display of Santa and his sleigh would light up the sky over Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Camarillo, El Rio, Santa Paula and Ventura.

"It’s not like we're giving up because we’re tired of it," Throckmorton said.

Throckmorton, one of three of the helicopter's pilots, said the helicopter can fly at 300 feet and drones can fly up to 400 feet, making it potentially dangerous. He pointed to the possibility of a drone hitting a rotor blade.

There was an incident in 2016 over Channel Islands Harbor where there was a near-miss between Santa and a drone, he said. The pilot did not see it but those on the ground did, Throckmorton said.

"Drones are everywhere, and we are very concerned about it," Throckmorton said.

Another reason for the retirement was that most of the flyover routes are heavily populated now.

Throckmorton said it's not illegal by FAA standards to fly over residential and business areas but they'd prefer a clearer area.

"There’s been increasing concern that we can’t move through the county," Throckmorton said.

Although the company's track record has been good — only missing a few years due to weather — flying over high-density areas is not something they are comfortable with.

The light display is also getting older, he said. And so are the three pilots who fly the helicopter, Throckmorton said.

"We’re getting up there to where we aren't as good as we used to... It was just time to call it retirement day," Throckmorton said.